Posts Tagged ‘appalachia’
Obama budget creates opportunities for Appalachian communities
The Obama administration’s 2016 budget calls for hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds to be spent cleaning up abandoned strip mines, and to support economic development and workforce training in mining communities facing layoffs as coal is increasingly outcompeted in America’s energy mix. Read a statement from Appalachian Voices Legislative Associate Thom Kay on the proposals.
An interview with Christopher Scotton, author of “Secret Wisdom of the Earth”
From The Appalachian Voice Online: “Secret Wisdom of the Earth,” the debut novel by Christopher Scotton released this week, is a coming-of-age story that takes familiar themes — tragedy and the quest to find healing — and explores them with the backdrop of a Central Appalachian community beset by mountaintop removal coal mining.
Appalachia’s Health Checkup
For decades, residents of Appalachia have struggled with poor health and disproportionate rates of chronic disease. In the face of these challenges, efforts to bring medical care to those in need and foster healthier communities are growing.
Read MoreThe Truth About Coal Ash
Coal ash — the byproduct of burning coal for electricity — is currently less regulated than regular household garbage. Filled with heavy metals, coal ash is proven to contaminate groundwater and pollute communities with dust.
Read MoreCommunity Impacts of Controversial Coalfields Expressway Project in Va. to Receive Thorough Review
Agency letters Federal Highway Administration, May 22, 2014 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Sept. 11, 2012 Environmental Protection Agency, Sept. 7, 2012 Corps of Engineers, Sept. 7, 2012 Contact: Jane Branham, Southern Appalachia Mountain Stewards, samsva@gmail.com, (276) 565-6167 Deborah Murray, Southern Environmental Law Center, dmurray@selcva.org, (434) 977-4090 Marley Green, Sierra Club, marley.green@sierraclub.org,…
Read More“Hollow” Documentary Wins Award
By Kelsey Boyajian Throughout “Hollow,” an interactive online documentary, the lush hills of Appalachia are juxtaposed beside stripped mountaintops. Through the stories of 30 individuals living in rural McDowell County, W.Va., director and producer Elaine McMillion uses a combination of web and film to spotlight the history and aspirations of the county’s 21,000 residents, and…
Read MoreFacing the Frontier: Practical Considerations for Genetic Modification in Appalachian Food
By Valerie Bruchon It sounds perfect: enter a laboratory, change one quality of a food crop through genetic technology, and walk away having created a “miracle” food source to help feed the world. This new crop might eradicate the need for destructive or unsustainable farming practices, or it could make farmland more productive by packing…
Read MoreCommunities Pursue Revitalization Plans
By Carvan Craft Convenient access to local food can be a rare commodity in rural communities. Thanks to the Appalachian Livable Communities grant program, founded in 2012, five Appalachian communities will receive a shared total of $375,000 to help make local food projects a reality. The grant will fund a new agricultural education facility for…
Read MoreAcrobats of the Forest: The Eastern Gray Treefrog
By Meredith Warfield It’s mating season in Appalachia, and the region’s deciduous forests are humming with life. Birdsongs may be heard by day, but by night the Eastern gray treefrogs have hopped out of the branches and flocked to nearby ponds, where they can be heard singing their melodic love songs in hopes of attracting…
Read MoreConfronting Carbon Pollution
By Molly Moore Six months after declaring “climate change is a fact,” in his State of the Union address, President Obama prepared to unveil what The New Yorker calls “the policy centerpiece of his second term.” The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines that he was poised to announce at press time will put in motion…
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